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Cardinals' miscues halt NLCS momentum against Dodgers

Jorge L. Ortiz, USA TODAY Sports
12:41 a.m. MST October 15, 2013

St. Louis Cardinals second baseman Matt Carpenter (13) reacts after striking out in the eighth inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 3 of the National League Championship Series baseball game at Dodger Stadium.(Photo: Richard Mackson, USA TODAY Sports)

Story Highlights

The Cardinals' uncharacteristic missteps proved costly in a Game 3 loss to the Dodgers

Jon Jay's blunder in center field allowed a double that sparked a two-run rally

Cardinals third baseman Allen Craig had to leave in the fifth inning when his calf tightened up

LOS ANGELES – Throughout the regular season and most of the playoffs, the St. Louis Cardinals could be counted on not to beat themselves. After all, they set franchise records for fewest errors and best fielding percentage in a season.

There are errors and then there are misplays, though, and a few of the latter on Monday may have exposed some chinks in the Cardinals' defensive armor.

Entering Game 3 with a 2-0 lead in the National League Championship Series and ace starter Adam Wainwright on the mound, St. Louis failed to keep the pressure on the Los Angeles Dodgers, whose 3-0 victory behind Hyun-Jin Ryu's masterful pitching breathed new life into their chances.

Moreover, the Cardinals looked not like a juggernaut about to punch their ticket to the World Series for the fourth time in 10 seasons, but like a team that may be feeling the impact of some injury absences and an inexperienced bench.

The game's key play had nothing to do with those elements. Center fielder Jon Jay, having a rough series, failed to take over on Mark Ellis' drive to right-center leading off the fourth, letting it fall between him and right fielder Carlos Beltran for a double that sparked a two-run rally. They were the Dodgers' first runs after a 22-inning scoreless drought.

"That's a play I have to make,'' said Jay, who also failed to snag a tougher drive off his glove by A.J. Ellis that went for a triple. "I'm the center fielder. I have to take charge.''

Indeed, with more decisive action on that fly ball, starting pitcher Wainwright may have faced Adrian Gonzalez with two outs and the bases empty, so his double would not have done any damage. Instead, it drove in a run. One out later, Yasiel Puig's triple made the score 2-0.

But perhaps a deeper concern for St. Louis as the series moves along is the limited capability of its bench, which has been thinned by Allen Craig's foot injury – he has yet to play in the postseason – and David Freese's calf strain.

The third baseman had to leave in the fifth inning when his calf tightened up, and while he didn't seem overly concerned afterward, there's no certainty about his availability for Tuesday and beyond.

"It's just sore,'' Freese said. "I'll get some rest and check it out tomorrow, do some tests and hopefully I can get back in there.''

PHOTOS: Best of NLCS

Game 6 -- Cardinals 9, Dodgers 0: Trevor Rosenthal (26) and Yadier Molina (4) celebrate after recording the final out to clinch the National League pennant. (Photo: Jerry Lai, USA TODAY Sports)

Gmae 6 -- Cardinals 9, Dodgers 0: St. Louis celebrates its World Series berth. The Cardinals will play for their second title in three years and third in eight years. (Photo: Jerry Lai, USA TODAY Sports)

Game 6 -- Cardinals 9, Dodgers 0: Carlos Beltran, center, lets the champagne fly after the celebration moved to the clubhouse. In his 16th big league season, Beltran is heading to the World Series for the first time. (Photo: Jeff Curry, USA TODAY Sports)

Game 6 -- Cardinals 9, Dodgers 0: St. Louis broke the game open with a five-run fifth inning to go up 9-0. Matt Adams drove in the first run of the inning with an RBI double. (Photo: Scott Rovak, USA TODAY Sports)

Game 5 -- Dodgers 6, Cardinals 4: Cardinals left fielder Matt Holliday is congratulated after scoring a run in the ninth inning against the Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. (Photo: Richard Mackson, USA TODAY Sports)

Game 5 -- Dodgers 6, Cardinals 4: Adrian Gonzalez hits a solo home run in the third inning to give the Dodgers a 3-2 lead. Gonzalez celebrates by flipping the bat. (Photo: Jayne Kamin-Once. USA TODAY Sports)

Game 4 -- Cardinals 4, Dodgers 2: Cardinals left fielder Matt Holliday (7) is congratulated by second baseman Matt Carpenter (13) after hitting a two-run home run in the third inning. (Photo: Jayne Kamin-Oncea, USA TODAY Sports)

Game 1 -- Cardinals 3, Dodgers 2: Carlos Beltran did it all to give St. Louis a 1-0 series lead. After making the game's biggest defensive play, Beltran drove in the game-winning run in the bottom of the 13th inning. (Photo: Scott Rovak, USA TODAY Sports)

Game 1 -- Cardinals 3, Dodgers 2: St. Louis catcher Yadier Molina, left, tags out Los Angeles runner Mark Ellis at the plate in the 10th inning. Ellis attempted to tag up and score on a flyout, but the double play ended the inning. (Photo: Scott Rovak, USA TODAY Sports)

Game 1 -- Cardinals 3, Dodgers 2: Molina celebrates the big out at the plate to end the top of the 10th inning. Cardinals right fielder Carlos Beltran threw a strike to nail Dodgers runner Mark Ellis at home. (Photo: Jeff Curry, USA TODAY Sports)

Game 1 -- Cardinals 3, Dodgers 2: St. Louis reliever Carlos Martinez was fired up after inducing an inning-ending double play to quash a Los Angeles threat in the top of the eighth. (Photo: Scott Rovak, USA TODAY Sports)

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Freese's departure forced Daniel Descalso to take over at third, leaving a bench of outfielders Shane Robinson and Adron Chambers, along with rookie infielder Kolten Wong and catcher Tony Cruz. None has played more than two full seasons in the majors.

Matt Adams, usually the Cardinals' big bat off the bench, has been starting at first in Craig's absence.

So when the Cardinals needed back-to-back pinch-hitters in the eighth, trailing 2-0 and trying to capitalize on Jay's leadoff single, they called on Wong and Chambers, who have a combined total of one hit in 12 postseason at-bats in their careers. In the regular season, they batted .153 and .154, respectively.

Wong struck out and Chambers grounded into a fielder's choice.

Wong stayed in to play second base and contributed to the Dodgers' third run when he misread Hanley Ramirez's soft liner with runners on first and second in the eighth. Wong first broke in, then couldn't catch up as the ball dropped over his head. Then he threw to second, allowing Carl Crawford to speed home with the game's final run.

"When you have a young bench and it doesn't have the experience other teams have, it's a factor,'' catcher Yadier Molina said, not referring specifically to that play. "But the guys are talented, and this is how you get experience. We have no doubt they can do the job, and they have so far. But it's true, it's a big factor.''

The miscues were not all a matter of inexperience. Descalso, in the seventh postseason series of his career, thwarted the Cardinals' best threat of the night with a baserunning blunder.

Descalso pinch-ran at second for Freese in the fifth, when St. Louis opened the inning with back-to-back singles, the club's first hits off Ryu. When Jay hit a blooper toward left, Descalso got three-quarters of the way to third before realizing Crawford could easily catch the ball, then doubled him up.

"I just misread it,'' Descalso said. "I thought he got jammed more and it was going to fall in front of him. Once I realized it was getting caught, I was too far away from second.''

Such mistakes are especially costly when a team is not hitting. St. Louis has scored a total of four runs in the NLCS, just one in the last 18 innings, and it's batting .134.

The Cardinals' 2-1 lead is a testament to their outstanding pitching and ability to make the most of their few chances, combined with the Dodgers' repeated failures in the clutch.

On Monday, though, St. Louis played a different brand of ball, one that didn't please manager Mike Matheny.

"It wasn't very characteristic of how we played all season,'' he said. "We just had a lot of balls in the air tonight that hit the ground that normally don't. We're a better club than this.''